Vacation 2012, Day 1 – Girliness, Girls, and Goodness

My vacation began with a trip to the hair salon for a cut and colour (first time I’ve had colour in several years) – what a great way to kick off my break! Nothing really compares to the feeling of a fresh new look done by a professional – and thanks to a recommendation from one of my new friends here in town, I have lucked into a fantastic stylist (who, incidentally, charges a fraction of what I remember paying in Victoria). Another win in Windsor!

I took my newly chocolate-brown-coiffed self out for sushi, then on a bit of a clothes shopping spree. I managed to snag a whole bunch of very cute end-of-season sale items for a fraction of their regular price (I am sensing a frugal theme here!), and since we still have plenty of season left I know I will get a lot of use out of them even though I am continuing to lose weight.

Observation: Moving to a completely new environment seems to have been the impetus needed for me to change my look!

More and more – and without really trying, even – I am moving away from my regular choice of head-to-toe black clothing with silver jewellery and accessories and heading in the direction of a much more vibrant and colourful new palette (something my poor sister has been trying to get me to do for years!). At one time the only clothes I would even look at were black, and if I did buy a colour, I’d usually stick with understated solids and shy away from patterns. These days I actually skip right past my usual choices and head straight for brighter colours and patterns. Strange days indeed…

After a brief stop at home I met up with several of the girls from my book club for dinner, and had a marvelous meal (tried fattoush for the first time – yum!) and visit with my friends. Once again I reminded myself just how fortunate I have been to have found such a great social group, in less than a year of living in a new city.

The rest of the evening was spent with my love – ice cream cones in the park and a walk along the riverfront on the best kind of evening, the air soft and warm with a gentle, cooling breeze. We stood by the river, sometimes chatting, sometimes quiet, with a background soundtrack of crickets chirping, friends chatting, children laughing, and music drifting across the river from an unknown concert. We watched the hypnotic sequenced lights and dance of the Peace Fountain… the occasional burst of fireworks across the river in Detroit… a huge yacht with silhouetted party-goers dancing on the upper deck (You know you make me wanna shout!), arms raised and hands waving to the music.

And I had one of those moments that used to be rare and fleeting, but come more often and last far longer these days – a feeling of overwhelming appreciation and love for life’s beauty, wonder, perfection, so much that I couldn’t take in one more ounce… as though I might burst from the sweet surplus of goodness and joy.